Seam-reducing machine



July 15, 1941 J.- R. OLIVER SEAM'REDUCING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 FiledMarch 22, 1940 July l5, 1941. J. R. OLIVER SEAM-REDUCING MACHINE FiledMarch 22. 1940 f lfll ----LL/ ffii! IIIUVJnIII/MIVIH July 15,' 1941.

J. R. OLIVER 2,249,034

SEAM-REDUCING MACHINE Filed March 22. 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 5Sheets-Sheet 5 J R OLIVER SEAM-REDUCING MACHINE Filed' March 22, 1940miga July 15, 1941.

zal/Z522? Patented July 15, 1941 U :Nl TED FS TATES @ATE FfFlfCE"SEM-,REDUCING li/IAGHINE AJohnR..:(Hiveneverly, Mass., assgnor toUnited Shoe Machinery Corporation, Borough of Flemington, N. J., .acorporation'of New Jersey Application March 22, 1940, Serial No. 325,452

(Cl. Gil-7) 21 Claims.

This invention relates to'machines'ffor reducing the seams of articlesof leather such'ars, vfor example, the back seamsof yshoe parts, and isillustrated as Vembodied in a machinefor carrying out the methoddisclosed inLetters Patent of the United States 2,181,243-grantedNovember 28, 1,939, on thev application of MacDonald. Anv object of thepresent'invention -is'the provision Yci? an improvedmachineiorcarryingout the method disclosed inthis patent.

In the illustrated embodiment ofthe-invention, 'the seamis-reduced-by-passing it under aJ hot iron which is heated `to adegreesuicient to-sear and char the leather thus causing ittobecomesl-ightly plastic, the leatherbeingmoldedby the-application ofpressure to 'spread and flatten the seam. The seam becomes shrunken and'comlpacted so 4that the-surface of thetreated edges lissubstantiallybone hard. In accordance with "oneAfeature'of-theinvention, the `searingiron is formedwith series of'ridges arranged in herringboneformation,thepoints'of the ridges faoing the Aentrance end of the iron, thuscausing kvthe-edges of theseam ridge to loe-spread outwardly-fromone-another. YThe ridges are spaced progressively -nearer the work`supportfrom the entrance end of the iron to the exit endthereof so thatthe flattening of the seam ridge'takes place progressively asthe work isfedlthereunden 'Aiurther object ofvmy invention is -to secure positiveandequal feedingl of-a workpiece Ymade up'of two pieces of materialjoinedv by aseam so that-the-seam -mayvbe yacted upon by a seam`reducing 'means and so vthat the materialY will always be fed lproperlythereby regardlessV of variaticns'inthickness of 'thework pieces or dif-`ferences between adjacent pieces. `Thisl object is Yattained inaccordance .with` a -furtherieature Aof my invention Aby Vmeans `of alower Afeed roll forsnpportingtthe materialQand afpair of` spaceddriven-upper feed .rolls .arranged Vto engage the wor-lr atlopposite'sides of V`a seam lin .the material. These -upper -feed rolls areyieldingly `mounted for fmovement toward `and\.away-from the lowerfeed-roll in accordance with the ythicknessofithe morkfand are alsocapableofryielding'movement 'relative/to one another.

lIn accordance `with a -ifurther feature of 'the '-insention, provisionis made for directing the seam-of the material to thefsearing iron. TheVlsearing `iron :is located jbetween `the -upper feed vrolls, and aeg-ageis also located "between-these ffeedrclls and is arranged'to-engagetheopposite Ysides of the seam ridgeto-directthe-seam'to thewherein z iron. The gage and iron `are valso preferably mounted foryielding movement. Y

The lower feed rollis mounted at the outer end of an arm which extendslaterally from and above the base of the machine. `This lower Yfeed rollis mounted for rotation about a horizontal axisl whichis'substantiallyperpendicular tothe longitudinal axis ofthe armsothatJ-themachine "may operate uponthe back' seam ofeclosed uppers,

such as those used in womensQpumpsgwhichmay ,be kfed'over thelowerfeedjroll without interfer- -ence from thefframe of the machine.`'Ihegupper feed rolls, the guide, and the-searing iron YAwhich areallnormally maintained adjacentf to-the lower feed roll aremounted'onafheadlmovablever- -tically upward to vpermit theseA'members-tobe moved simultaneously away from the lower jfeedroll'sothat a plurality of closeclfuppersjthe-seams Eof which havebeenreduced and whichhave-ac- `rected downwardly.V This viron islarr-anged'tobe moved upwardly bythe operator upon movement of asuitable controllersuch as a 'treadle, butto prevent theiron, whenidle,from vapproaching @too ,near the torch, thetorch is rst moved upwardly aconsiderable distance before the iron starts to moveupward,.whereuponthe two mem- ,bersy movelas aunit. Y This,n'iovernentvof the iron permits removal of the iron from the workat ,any ytimeduringthepassage of the-Work through ,themachine VIf theoperatordesiresgto interrupt itherfeed of the work` at any time, vthevfeed rolls lmaybe moved vupwardly afterthe liron has .been

moved upwardly, -by further ',depress'ionof .the

treadle -If the treadle is stillfurther-depressed, theguidefwhichengages thefoppositefsi'des-.of the seam -ridge is moved upwardly thusfacilitating removal of the woikpiecefrom the-lowerfeed wheel before the`work` `:has 'passed-*entirely through the machine, iffdesired.

These and 'other features oftheinventionwill nowbe described .inthefollowing dtaile'didelscription and 'illustrated 1in 'the #drawingsFig. 1 is a side elevation of a machine in which the present inventionis embodied;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation, on a larger scale, of the operating head ofthe machine, certain parts being shown in section;

Fig. 3 is a detail view partly in section illustrating the relativeoperating positions of the iron, the torch, and one of the upper feedwheels;

Fig. 4 is a plan View of the operating head of the machine;

Fig. 5 is a section on the line V-V of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a section on the line VI--VI of Fig. 1;

Fig. 7 is a front elevation of the machine;

Fig. 8 is a vertical section on the line VIII- VIII of Fig. 6;

Fig. 9 is a detail view partly in section of the guide and its mounting;

Fig. 10 is a vertical section illustrating the mounting for the iron;

Fig. 11 is a front view on a large scale of the searing iron;

Fig. 12 is a perspective View of the iron il-4 lustrating thearrangement of the ridges in the bottom thereof;

Fig. 13 is a detail view, partly in vertical section along the seam, ona larger scale, of the iron, the guide for directing the work thereto,and the lower feed Wheel, illustrating a piece of work being operatedupon;

Figs. 14, 15, and 16 are vertical sections through the searing iron andthe lower feed roll, illustrating the progressive reducing action of theiron upon the seam ridge; and

Fig. 17 is a view of a piece of work after the seam ridge has beenreduced by the illustrated machine.

The machine is illustrated as being provided with a casing I6 supportedo-n a base l2 (Fig. l), the casing having a lower arm I4 extendinglaterally therefrom and an upper overhanging arm l VI6.

A shaft I8 mounted Within the casing I6 carries a pulley 20 at its outerend which may be connected by a belt 22 to a suitable driving means. Theshaft 8 carries a worm 23 which engages a worm gear 24 mounted on theinner end of a shaft 26 journaled inthe casing I0 and extending throughthe arm I4, the outer end of the shaft being journaled in the outer endof the arm. A bevel gear 28 is mounted on the outer end of the shaft 26and engages a bevel gear 30 mounted on a shaft 32 which carries a lowerfeed roll 34 (Fig. 7). The shaft 32 is journaled at one end in a support36 fastened to the outer end of the arm |4 by screws 38, this supportbeing rounded to conform to the shape of the feed roll 34. The outer endof the arm I4 includes a rounded lateral extension 39 as shown in Fig. 1to form a continua-tion of the support 36. A similar support 40 (Fig. 7)fastened to the outer end of rthe arm I4 at the opposite side of theroll 34 supports the other end of the shaft 32 and forms a housing forthe gear 28. The supports 36 and 40 cooperate with the roll 34 tosupport a work piece such as a shoe upper which is to be fed by the roll34 toward the inner end of the arm I4, during which time the back seamis to be reduced by mechanism to be described.

A pair of upper feed rolls 42 and 44 (Fig. 7) having serrated edges arearranged to engage a work piece at opposite sides of a seam therein.These rolls are individually yieldingly mounted to accommodate workpieces of ydifferent thicknesses and variations of thickness in -asingle work piece and these upper feed rolls are positively driven atequal speeds so that the Work piece will be fed in a straight line bythese feed rolls and the feed roll 34. The feed rolls 42 and 44 aremounted on shafts 46 and 48 respectively which are in turn mounted inthe lower end of arms and 52. These arms are pivoted on a shaft 54secured in the lower end of a head 56 of the machine, which head ismounted for vertical movement in the outer end of the arm- I6 (Fig. 5).

Gears 58 and 60 (Fig. 7) journaled on the shaft 54, engage gears 62 and64 mounted on the shafts 46 and 48 respectively. Gears 65 and 68 mountedon a shaft 16 journaled in the head 56 of the machine mesh with thegears 58 and respectively. The shaft I0 receives power through bevelgears 'I2 and I4 from a vertical shaft 'I6 journaled in the head 56 andhaving a spline connection at its upper end with a gear 78. The gear 'I8is driven by a gear 80 mounted on the upper end of a downwardly andrearwardly inclined shaft 82 (Figs. l and 2) journaled in the outer endof the overhanging arm I6. The shaft 82 has a squared recess at itslower end (Fig. 1) which coacts with a correspondingly shaped recess inthe upper end of a shaft 84, the lower end of which is journaled in thecasing I0. The shafts 82 and 84 are maintained in driving engagement bya sleeve 86 pinned to the shaft 82, this sleeve permitting the shafts tomove away from one another suiciently to accommodate vupward movement ofthe head 56 in the arm I6. 'I'he shaft 84 is connected to the drivingshaft |8 by a worm gear 88 carried at the lower end of the shaft 84 andmeshing with the worm 23.

Power is supplied to the feed rolls 42 and 44 by the gearing describedabove. Since there are separate sets of gearing between the shaft 'I0(Fig. 7) and the individual feed rolls, and since these feed rolls aremounted for rocking movement about the axis-of the shaft 54 carrying thegears 53 and 60, it will be seen that either of the upper feed rolls 42and 44 may moveupwardly relative to the other to accommodate variationsin thickness of the work pieces or differences between the adjacentpieces.

The feed rolls 42 and 44 are normally urged downwardly toward the feedroll 34 under spring pressure. For this purpose the arms 50 and 52 whichsupport the feed wheels have rearwardly extending portions 90 (Fig. 2)through which pass rods 92 which are supported for vertical movement inthe head 56 and carry nuts 94 at the upper ends thereof. The lower endsof the rods 92 carry hemispherical members 95 which engagecorrespondingly shaped recesses in the extensions 90 of the arms 50 and52, the lower sides of the members 96 being engaged by yieldable fingers91 fixed to the arms. The rods 92 are urged upwardly to move the feedrolls 42 and 44 downwardly by springs 98 acting between the nuts 94 anda plate |00 fastened by screws |0| and |02 (Fig. 4) to the top of thehead 56. This plate has a rearward extension which overlies the forwardend of the overhanging arm I6 to limit -downward movement of the head 56relative to the arm. A guard |65 also secured to the head 56 by a screw|01 encloses the bevel gears I8 and 80. Downward movements of the upperfeed rolls are limited by screws |04 threaded into the under side of thehead 56 and locked inl adjusted positions by nuts |06. It will thus beseen that the springs 98 act through the rods 92 and the rearwardextensions of the arms 50 and 52 to urge the .upper 'feed-rolls toward`lthe4lower feed roll, while l.per'mitting lindividual upward movementsfof these .rolls to accommodate i/'arying thicknesses o'f materialpassing Vithereonder.

The extent lto 'which the upper freed frlolls sm'ay move .towardtheflower .feedmoll imay be -varied byy adjusting lthe'sc'rews 164..-fshapeto'f the head 55 is best 'illustrated in Fig.-5 Lvl-herein .itwill be seen that it is .providedwithfa 'vertically extending dovetailedportion freceive'd uby f-a groove in the outer end of the arm "i126:formed by 'the recess ||2 `and Ytgt-.gib TF4 tior permitting verticalmovement Vof the ffhe'ad lrelative tto *the arm. Theheadf'isillustratedf'inEig. 2,-asfbeing in itslowermost.positionwvithth'eirear end .oflthe plate |09 in'engagemezitwith'the' toip'fof thearm IG. In vorder to movethef'headfupwardlyiand with it the various v.partis #carried 'thereby, fthemachine isA providedwith "ana'rmlll (Figs. i1, f4, and '7) mountedon ashaft f-zajournal'edin -the arm |6, this `shaft also carrying 'a gearsector |22. The gear 'sector .engages-a nrgear |24 `(Figs. 2 land T7)mounted on `a shaft :|25 `which also carries a crank 126 the uter'fendofwhich is pivotally--connected 'to 1a link "|30 .joined 'to .the head f56by a screw |32. The `ciank A526 `andlinli 30 form a `toggle i connectionwhich A'is :straightcned upon ycounterclo'ckvvise 'movemen't of the gearsector |22 and the consequent .iclockwise movementof Ythe crank I|26..Thi-sfstraightening;

of the toggle `-causes f-upward movement "of the upperfend of the linklillfthus A'causing .upward movement of the :head L56 `relative to the`arm |55 -to -lift the feed rolls #Zand-'44 `and l:the asso- Vcia-tedmembers to fbedescribed, upwardly -from the feed roll .-34 a'considerable distance; thuszp'ermitting a plurality vlof .Vamps 'whichhave iaccumulated'on the arm I4 fto-lbe removed .simultaneously. ThearmlfI-Bfby means-of whichfthe operator raises the head 56, is 'normallyfmaintained inthe .position `illustrated-in lthe different yviews-withthe-.head-Ein its lowermostlposition, by a spring t|34 connected'atoneend fbysapin L36 Afastened 'to .the arm --|\|=6, theother -end Iof thespring being'connected storaepin |40 (Fig. di) extendingoutward-lyiromthef arm 4B,

vIn order toguidethe `wor-kwithvtheseamridge centrally disposed withrespect to the upper feed rolls, -a guide #|42 is located therebetween#and the seamofY the =worl= A piece passes. This slotfha-s walls that`converge in the ydirection offfeedfof the work. as indicated in Fig. 9to facilitate entrance of -the seam .thereinwhilecloselyrembracing theseam .ridge at the exit end `of the guide -to position the workvaccur-ately'lasitfap- -proachesa seam reducing iron .to bedescribed.

-rnitted lby the nutsJ-SO.

In .order-toreduce the .seam ridgefoffthe lwork, a searing iron |60 is.fpositioneddire'ctly beyond the guide l|42 in thedirectionbifeed,thisri'ron oi'fthe guide. .As indicated in Figs. l11 to ,1'6 theiron-iszprovid'ed onfits undersurface ywith :a `pluralitytofiridges |262arrangedin herringbone iform'ation, the .pointsofwhi'ch are directedltoward lthe entrance end of vtheiironlto 'spread thematerial ateach'side of the seam.' outwardly. The iron isalso 'pro-vided withanentrance 'lgroove |64 fand the'ridges adjacentto 4this end of the iron'are :spaced Vfurther from :the feed roll 534 fthan the ridges at theother end thereof to .cause --a progressive :spreading and .flatteningv'of the .seam ridge las it passes thereunder.

The iron is mounted in a slide |66 the lower end of which, as indicatedin Figs. 3 and 13, is provided wi'th apai'r `of vertical groovesforreceiving `upstanding `legs .|68 and |10 of the iron. ScreWs .|12.and H4 vsecure the iron rigidly in .lplaceiin .the slide |66andlper-mit vertical adjustment of the iron with're'spect to the slide.The lower end 'of the :slide 'is Aapertured to receive a torch 'H6flocate'd above the iron '160 for'heatlin-'gthe same. The slide 4Hit-'ismounted ina vertical dovetailgroove yllllinthehead 5B (Fig. 5), one.wall of .this groove being lfo-rmeo'l'byan ad- :iu-stable :gib 1|'80Vsecured in place by screws |82 fand '|83 (Figs. 2 .and `5).. .A recess2|84 (Figs. .2.an'd 10) Aisrformedi'nthe upper end of the 'slide fandforms a #seat "for a spring |86 the upper'fend "of which is? receivedVby a :recess |8'8 formed in the-.plate TIUU "at the top of `the v.head56. This spring urges the'ir'on downwardlyf'toward the 'lower c'feedroll 34, 'this downward movement being adjustably limited by a screw|l`9|l ithreaded "into 'the top of the Aslide and' the head of whichbears again's't the upper surface of uthe plate |100. .'Ilhe'iltorh|16fis"c0nnected bva tube '|92 (Fig. T8) to a .mixing Ychamber 2|f94secured to a slide f9.6 mounted for veiltical movement inaslideway |98(Fig. 5).. The-)mixing chamberis secured toth'e.slide:by'a-fsupportiZUil l'Eig. 8) which isad-.-justabljvcon'nected thereto-byla screw'2`)2 -pass- `l.ing .through :an"oversized hole 'in the `lower "end of .the support 2.200 Aand'threadedly `received b y thelslide |96; The 'upper end '-'o'f thesupport 200 iis fork'edas indicated 'in AFig.Zandembraces a pinnenextending into :the snee-lee. iUpon 100sening fthe screw 202 fthe"supporlt 2.00 fmay Vloev rocked aboutthe'faxisof'the pin "2 0'4 byreason of the oversized hole -.through which the screw 1262 i.p'a'sses,thus permitting lateral ad'justmentof the torch |15frelativeftotheiironvvI 6|] .Y 'l

- fableiuel which will giveasuicientlyfhotiiame to fraise 'the"temperature of the r"iron to the'desired vvalueo'i'iesuitable fuelbeing a mixture of 4'oX-ygenland acetylene.V The mixing chamber |94 #hasa .pair o'f f'inlets 2||l land 212 Vto which are connected :.iieXibletubes l2 M 'Sand 12 |6 respectively (Figs. and 7) 'which'are inV turnconnected Ito vvalves f2|8 "and 22|) (Fig. il) which control theow1of'g`ase's 1through 'these tubes. VThese rvalves 'may beprovidedfwithindicia which cooperate "Withpointers 222to indicate the relativeamounts -`of f'gases being supplied through the? tubes tothe torch.

Provision `is `matie :for raising theva'rious 'work engaging memberscarried T-by the head 'frela- `tively thereto. *For `:this Tp'virpose `a'treadle rrod .-240 (Fig. ;-1) is arranged to xrloe-connected toaAtreadle and biased by Ameans i (not shown) .to-lthe positionillustrated. The :upper fend fo'f the ftreadle trod is `pivoted tothe-outer I endfofan varm f242, `the other endoflwliichiis lfast toone-end of a shaft 244 journaled 1in the `housing ifi). `An

being inalignment with theffgroove in-.thebottom 75 far'mf is carriedbyithetherferid ofthe shaft 244 and is pivoted to a link 248 which is inturn pivotally connected by a pin 249 to one arm 250 of a bell cranklever pivoted at 252 to an upwardly and rearwardly projecting arm 254 ofthe plate secured to the top of the head 56. The other arm 255 of thebell crank lever is connected by a pin 284 to a link 256 the lower endof which is pivoted at 258 to the upper end of the torch slide |96. Bydepressing the treadle rod 240, clockwise movement is imparted to thebell crank lever which raises the torch slide |95 within the head 56 tomove the torch away from the iron |60.

The'iron |60 is arranged to be raised upon downward movement of thetreadle rod 240, but not until the torch |16 has been moved upwardly apredetermined distance. For this purpose, a lost motion connection isprovided between the arm 255 of the bell crank lever and the iron slide|55. (Figs. l, 2, and pivoted at its upper end to an intermediateportion of the arm 255 of the bell crank lever, the lower end of thelink 250 being provided with a slot 262 embracing a screw 264 projectingfrom the iron slide |66. As the arm 255 of the bell crank lever movesupwardly about the pivot 252, raising the torch |16, the link 250 ismoved upwardly therewith and after the torch has been raised asufficient distance the lower end of the slot 262 engages the screw 264so that further upward movement of the arm 255 causes the iron to belifted away from the lower feed roll 34.

Upon further downward movement of the treadle rod 240, the upper feedrolls 42 and 44 are arranged to be lifted. A pair of levers 210 and 212(Fig. 4) are fulcrumed on a pin 214 mounted in the upper end of an arm216 (Fig. 2) extending upwardly from the plate |00. The right ends ofthese levers are positioned over the upper ends of the rods 92, theupper ends of these rods being provided with rounded heads 218. Fingers280 (Fig. 2) are secured by screws 282 to the underside of the levers210 and 212 and engage the underside of the heads 218 so that the rods92 move with the levers. The opposite ends of the levers 210 and 212 arepositioned in the path of movement of the pin 284 which forms theconnection between the bell crank lever arm 255 and the link 256, thepin having a portion 286 (Fig. 4) extending outwardly beyond the link256. Upon upward movement of the arm 255 of the bell crank lever, afterthe iron has been lifted away from the lower feed roll 34, the extension286 of the pin 284 engages the left ends of the levers 210 and 212 torock these levers in a clockwise direction, thus forcing the rods 92down against the action of the springs 98. This movement of the rods 92causes the arms and 52 supporting the feed rolls 42 and 44 to moveclockwise, as viewed in Fig. 1, thus lifting the feed rolls away fromthe work.

During the raising of the torch, iron and feed rolls, the guide |42 hasremained in its operative position. After the feed rolls start to moveup by reason of the downward movement of the treadle rod 240, the guide|42 will be raised. This is accomplished by means of the engagement of alug 290, secured by a screw 29| to the slide |46 (Fig. 2), with thebottom of a recess 292 formed in the side of the torch slide |96. Thisrecess is made sufliciently long that the bottom thereof will not engagethe lug 290 until the iron and feed rolls have been lifted.

In order to convey fumes resulting from the This connection comprises alink 26|)v searing of the material by the iron and charred bits ofmaterial removed thereby, away from the machine, the head 56 is providedwith a vertically extending groove 300 (Fig. 5) which extends to thebottom thereof. The upper end of the groove 300 communicates with apassageway 302 extending through the overhanging arm I6 and beingconnected at the rearward end thereof with a pipe 304 (Fig. 1) which maybe connected yto a source of suction.

In operation, the parts of the machine will be in the positionsillustrated in the drawings with the upper feed rolls 42 and 44, theguide |42, and the iron |60 adjacent to the lower feed roll 34. Assumingthe back seama of a closed upper U is to be reduced the upper ispresented inside out to the machine with the heel portion supported onthe feed roll 34 and the supports v36 and 40, and with the seam ridgeentering the slot in the guide |42. This slot guides the seam ridge andcenters it with respect to the iron |60 to which the seam passes, thefeeding action being effectedby the cooperative action of the upper andlower vfeed rolls. During its passage under the iron, the ridges |62which are arranged in herringbone formation spread the same ridge andprogressively fiatten it as indicated in Figs. 14 to 17, due to the factthat the ridges in the lower surface of the iron are progressivelynearer the adjacent surface of the feed roll 34. The iron is heated bythe torch |16 to a sufficiently high temperature to cause the leather tobe charred and rendered slightly plastic, this action causing the seamto become shrunken and compacted and rendering the surface of thetreated edges substantially bone hard. In addition to spreading andflattening the seam ridge, the ridges |62 also act to remove charredportions of the material, the finished reduced seam S having the generalappearance shown in Fig. 1'1.

After the seam ridge has been reduced, the upper U moves on to the lowervarm |4 (Fig. l) and another upper may be passed through the machine.The uppers collect on the arm I4 as indicated in Fig. 1 wherein isillustrated two uppers which have been passed through the machine. 'Ihearm I4 has capacity for collecting a large number of uppers and in orderto permit simultaneous removal thereof, the head 56 and all theoperating parts carried thereby may be raised a considerable distance bymoving the arm |5 downwardly thus effecting a straightening of thetoggle composed of the crank arm |26 and link |30.

Should the iron become too hot or should it be desired to raise the ironaway from the work, the torch is rst lifted away from the iron bydepressing the treadle rod 240. Thus, at the will of the operator theiron may be rendered ineffective at any time and the torch will alwaysbe spaced sufficiently therefrom to prevent overheating of the iron.Should the operator desire to interrupt the feeding movement of thework, the treadle rod 240 is further depressed which raises the upperfeed rolls 42 and 44 out of engagement with the work, and if rtheoperator desires to remove the work piece before it has passed throughthe machine, further depression ent of the United States is:

1. In a seam-reducing machine, a lower driven feed roll for supporting apiece of work, a pair of spaced, upper, driven feed'rolls coacting withsaid first rollfor engaging theV other side'ofthe work on opposite`sidesof a seam therein, and seam-reducing means between Vsaid upperlfeedrolls. 'i Y 2. In a seam-reducingmachine, a lower driven feed rollfor supporting a piece of work, a pair of upper driven feed rollscoacting with said firstV roll for engaging the other side of the workon opposite sides of a seam therein, means mounting said upper' feed'rolls for yielding movement, and seam-reducing means located betweensaid upper vfeed rolls. 1 Y .I

3. In a seam-reducing machine, a lower driven feedroll on whichaworkpiecegmay besupported, a pair of spaced upper driven Vfeed rollscoacting with said first roll for engaging the upper side of the work onopposite sides of a seam therein, means mounting said feed rolls forindependent yielding movement, and seam-reducing means associatedtherewith.

4. In a back-seam-reducing machine, a supporting arm, a lower drivenfeed roll mounted at the end of said arm and arranged to rotate about ahorizontal axis substantially at right angles to the aXi-s of said arm,a pair of upper driven feed rolls arranged to engage a work piecesupported on said lower feed roll at opposite sides of a. seam therein,and seam-reducing means associated with said upper feed rolls.

5. In a seam-reducing machine, a lower driven feed roll, a pair of upperdriven feed rolls arranged to engage a work piece supported on saidlower feed roll at opposite sides of a seam therein, means for movingsaid upper feed rolls away from said lower feed roll, and seam-reducingmeans arranged to act on the seam of the work piece.

6. In a seam-reducing machine, a lower driven feed roll, a pair of upperdriven feed rolls ar- Y ranged to engage a work piece supported on thelower feed roll at opposite sides of a seam therein, seam reducing meanslocated between said upper feed rolls, and guide means engaging saidseam and directing it to said seam-reducing means.

7. In a seam-reducing machine, coacting feed rolls arranged to gripopposite sides of a work piece therebetween, seam-reducing meansassociated with said feed rolls for reducing a seam in the work pieceduring feeding movement thereof, and guide means engaging opposite sidesof said seam and arranged to direct -the work te said feed rolls withthe seam properly disposed with respect to said seam-reducing means.

8. Ina seam-reducing machine, a lower driven feed roll, a pair of upperfeed rolls arranged to engage a work piece supported on the lower feedroll at opposite sides of a seam therein, a yieldingly mounted searingtool between said upper feed rolls, and guide means arranged to engagethe seam and direct it to said searing tool.

9. In a seam-reducing machine, a lower feed roll, a pair of upper feedrolls arranged to engage a work piece supported on said lower feed rollat opposite sides of a seam therein, a yield- Yingly mounted searingtool between ysaid upper engage a work piece suppor-tedonl the lowerfeed roll adjacent to a seam therein, a searing ltool ad-v jacent tosaid upper feed roll for reducing the seam of the work-piece, aguideengaging the seam` and arranged to direct the work piece to y thesearing tool, meanszfor raising in a predeterduced thereby, and a guidefor directing the material with the seampassing centrally beneath saidsearing tool.

12. In a seam-reducing machine, means for feeding a work piece having aseam therein to be reduced, a searing tool arranged to engage the seamridge, said searing tool having a ridgereceiving entrance groove, and aguide arranged to engage opposite sides of the seam ridge for directingthe seam ridge to said entrance groove.

13. In a seam-reducing machine, a work support, means for feedingmaterial having a seam ridge to be reduced, a searing tool arranged toengage the seam ridge, said tool having a ridgereceiving entrance grooveandk seam-engaging ridges beyond said grooves in the direction offeeding movement, 'and a guide for directing the seam ridge to saidentrance groove.

14. In a seam-reducing machine, means for feeding a work piece having aseam ridge to be reduced, a searing tool having an entrancegroove forthe seam ridge, and seam-engaging ridges beyond said groove in thedirection of feeding movement, said ridges being arranged substantiallyin herring-bone formation with the ridges diverging in the direction offeeding movement.

15. In a seam-reducing machine, means for feeding a work piece having avseam ridge to be reduced, a searing tool having an entrance groove forthe seam ridge, and seam-engaging ridges beyond ,said groove in thedirection of feeding movement, said ridges being arranged substantiallyin herringbone formation with the ridges diverging in the direction4 offeeding movement, said ridges approaching closer to the body of thematerial at the exit end of the searing tool than adjacent to theentrance groove.

16. In a seam-reducing machine, a work support, means for feeding a workpiece having a seam ridge therein over said work support, a searing toolarranged to engage said seam ridge for reducing the same, said searingtool having work engaging ridges arranged substantially in herringboneformation.

17. In a seam-reducing machine, a work support, means for feeding a workpiece having a seam ridge therein over said work support, asearing toolarranged to engage said seam ridge forv ringbone formation, said Yridgesbeing arranged progressively nearer the work support from the entranceend thereof to the exit end thereof. i

18. In a seam-reducing machine, a work support, means for feeding a workpiece having a seam ridge therein over said work support, a

searing tool arranged to engage said seam ridge for reducing the same,said searing tool having worh engaging ridges arranged substantially inherrmgbone formation, and a guide engaging opposite sides of said seamridge and arranged to direct the same to the center of said searingtool.

19. In a seam-reducing machine, means for supporting a work piece havinga seam therein, an iron located above the supporting means forengagement with the seam, a torch mounted above the iron for directing aame thereon, and operator controlled means arranged upon initialmovement thereof to raise the torch away from the iron, and uponfurther4 movement thereof to raise the iron away from the work piece.

20. In a seam-reducing machine, a lower feed roll for supporting a workpiece, an upper feed roll cooperating therewith to feed the work, asearing iron adjacent to the upper feed roll and arranged to engage aseam ridge in said work piece, a torch mounted above the iron andarranged to direct a name downwardly thereon, a

guide adjacent to said feed roll and arranged to direct the seam to saidiron, and means for progressively raising the torch, the iron, the feedroll and the guide in the order named.

21. In a seam-reducing machine, a lower feed roll for supporting ra Workpiece, an upper feed roll cooperating therewith to feed the work, asearing iron adjacent to the upper feed roll and arranged to engage aseam ridge in said work piece, a torch mounted above the iron andarranged to direct a ame downwardly thereon, a guide adjacent to saidfeed roll and arranged to direct the seam to said iron, means forprogressively raising the torch, the iron, the feed roll and the guidein the order named, and additional means for simultaneously raising saidtorch, iron, feed roll and guide.

J OHN R. OLIVER.

